Existing-home sales slowed again last month, but aspiring home buyers continue to face competition for limited inventory. Read more from NAR's latest housing report.

"Navigating uncertainty together, making our colleagues look good, being curious"—all necessities in improvisational comedy—also happen in companies, and doing so with humor aids "creativity, collaboration and communication," writes Neil Mullarkey, author of "In The Moment: Build Your Confidence, Communication and Creativity at Work." Mullarkey explains good and bad types of humor, why they're important and how to use them well.

Learning to read people and knowing how to keep your emotions in check are just as important in business as they are in the spy game, writes leadership consultant and former counterintelligence agent LaRae Quy. Mirroring the colleague's or client's responses and using soothing tones are two ways to keep both parties' emotions in check, Quy says.

As rental rates slow, owners may consider returning inventory to the market

A six-sided home, inspired by a windmill, is up for sale in Stoddard, N.H. Listed for $700,000, the house offers three bedrooms and 1.5 bathrooms within its 1,435 square feet, along with a wraparound deck, vaulted ceiling, wood stove, beach access and a private dock, all situated on a 0.79-acre lot with views of Highland Lake.

Single-family housing starts declined last month, but permits for future construction rose to the highest level in 12 months, according to the Commerce Department. Meanwhile, starts for multifamily projects dropped 11.6%.

Mortgage interest rates experienced a slight decrease last week, leading to a 1.1% increase in total mortgage application volume compared to the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. While this dip in rates spurred a 7% jump in home loan refinancing applications, it had little impact on potential buyers, with applications for home purchases falling by 1% for the week and being 21% lower than the same week last year.

Meta's second iteration of its open-source AI model—Large Language Model Meta AI—is available as part of Microsoft Azure, which also houses OpenAI's chatbot tools, and is being made available for commercial use. Microsoft also is preparing to launch the AI-powered Bing Chat Enterprise for Microsoft 365 business customers at a $5 monthly access fee per user, unless they're already Enterprise users.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's executive orders aimed at creating more affordable housing in New York City have gotten a mixed-at-best response from the labor community. "We are disappointed in the Governor's decision to side with billionaire real estate developers over the hundreds of thousands of working men and women in the unionized construction industry," according to a joint statement from the New York State Iron Workers Association and the Cement and Concrete Workers District Council.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra said banks should "expect a more rigorous review of applications" for mergers in the aftermath of the March banking turmoil. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu recently have voiced support for M&A activity to shore up midsize lenders, but Chopra said "the ink on the rubber stamp has dried up" and that he hopes to see regulators shift "from cheerleader to umpire."